Oh, little Jeannie
You got so much love, little Jeannie
And you take it where it strikes
And give it to the likes of me
Oh, little Jeannie
She got so much love, little Jeannie
So I see you when I can
You make me all a man can be

And I want you to be my acrobat
I want you to be my lover
Oh, there were others who would treat you cruel
And, oh Jeannie
You were always someone's fool

Little Jeannie
You got so much time, little Jeannie
Though you've grown beyond your years
You still retain the fears of youth
Oh, little Jeannie
You got so much time, little Jeannie
But you're burning it up so fast
Searching for some lasting truth

And I want you to be my acrobat
I want you to be my lover
Oh, there were others who would treat you cruel
But, oh Jeannie
I will always be your fool

And I want you to be my acrobat
I want you to be my lover
Oh, there were others, and I've known quite a few
But, oh Jeannie
I'm still in love with you

You stepped into my life from a bad dream
Making the life that I had, seem
Suddenly shiny and new
Oh, Jeannie (oh, Jeannie)
I'm so in love with you

You stepped into my life from a bad dream
Making the life that I had, seem
Suddenly shiny and new
Oh, Jeannie (oh, Jeannie)
I'm so in love with you

You stepped into my life from a bad dream
Making the life that I had, seem
Suddenly shiny and new
Oh, Jeannie (oh, Jeannie)
I'm so in love with you

You stepped into my life from a bad dream (so in love)
Making the life that I had, seem
Suddenly shiny and new
Oh, Jeannie (oh, Jeannie)
I'm so in love (I'm so in love)

You stepped into my life from a bad dream
Making the life that I had, seem
Suddenly shiny and new
Oh, Jeannie (oh, Jeannie)
I'm so in love (I'm so in love)

Edit Lyrics

Lyrics submitted by zygote

Little Jeannie Lyrics as written by Gary Anthony Osborne Elton John

Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group

Lyrics powered by LyricFind

Little Jeannie song meanings

Add Your Thoughts

12 Comments

+3
General Commentgreat song and elton john rules.
minervoon June 02, 2007 Link
- No Replies Log in to reply
There was an error.

@minervo
+2
General CommentNo comments on this song? That's a pity. It's definitely my favorite Elton John song. The last part ("You stepped into my life from a bad dream / Making the life that I had seem / Suddenly shiny and new") really speaks to me. Beautiful song.
DoubtFullon July 14, 2006 Link
- No Replies Log in to reply
There was an error.

@DoubtFull
+2
General CommentI see it as a man who knows a woman who's gone through a litany of bad relationships, guys taking advantage of her and making her a fool. The protagonist has always loved her but she had a thing for these bad guys. Finally she realizes that the protagonist of the song is someone who will treat her right and comes to him.

This causes extreme happiness for the protagonist and makes his life suddenly shiny and new.

Just guessing at the acrobat reference. He wants her to take a chance like a circus performer doing something dangerous without a net.
SteelyDanon January 05, 2012 Link
- 2 Replies Log in to reply
There was an error.

@SteelyDan

Love is an tight rope walk without a net.
emuInAmuumuuon May 06, 2012

@SteelyDan I disagree. I think the acrobat reference is because she is a gymnast "acrobat" & she doesn\'t have a lot of experience with men, she\'s young & naive, which is referred to throughout the song." You\'ve got so much love" " You\'ve got so much time. Though You\'ve grown beyond your years, you still retain the fears of youth" as she gets older they have a relationship, ending with " I\'m still in love with you" & how she made his life "shiny & new", presumably with her innocence. There is a distinct protective vibe in the way he speaks of her being so loving but ending up "someone\'s fool", which could include himself, due to " you got so much love, you take it where it strikes & give it to the likes of me". \r\n I\'m also pretty sure who it was written about, I was told by someone who knew the writer, Elton & it was about the sister of someone Elton was dating, she was a gymnast in college in 78-81 & her name is Jeannie, I know he said that\'s not her real name, but he also said he wasn\'t revealing her identity, so he couldn\'t anyway & wasn\'t a issue in 1980...no internet. Describes her exactly as well, & what man doesn\'t love a gymnast turning 18?
julie10554on April 04, 2022
+1
General CommentAfter 3 years later----i agree with jwo. This is a great song, and the beat!
IsaacPoweron April 04, 2011 Link
- No Replies Log in to reply
There was an error.

@IsaacPower
+1
General Commentthe acrobat part of the song could mean to be an entertainer, a person who amuses you.. it's almost like saying "you're my star" or something.. that's how I felt. Because, beyond being just a lover, as he mentions in the following line, she's this person who makes him smile, who amuses him, who surprises him.. kind of like when people say that they'd like to have some one to love, but also that this person makes them laugh or something.. I don't know if it's too far fetched, but that's how I always felt about this line..
Juliagaibuon June 14, 2012 Link
- No Replies Log in to reply
There was an error.

@Juliagaibu
+1
General CommentThis is one of my favorite songs. I'm sure the acrobat reference refers to sex. Elton John and his writer may not admit it but it says I want you to be my acrobat, I want you to be my lover. I could be wrong, but you know I'm not.as monk would say. If you don't want to be dirty then when you hear it you could just cover your ears or and eyes and make believe that he really didn't say that,
Tanthemanon June 24, 2014 Link
- No Replies Log in to reply
There was an error.

@Tantheman
+1
General CommentBasically this is the common tale, about a good guy who is in love with a woman, who has a thing for bad guys, probably he's her best friend, therefore he knew all the sorrow that she has for these bad relationships, but this will never change, since she needs to find out what is wrong with her, and this is, a low self esteem, that's why she can stand abuse and humillation.
The last part of the song, is almost like a prayer, he wants that she understand, what is wrong and change it, but this will never gonna happen. The whole song is claim, a wish, saddly love can't change people, they need to change by themselves.
The song also has a hint about ages, little jeannie probably is a young woman around 20 years, the guy probably is an older guy 30 or 40 years old, someone who knows that Jeannie wants to be in love, but she can't even love herself, that's why he can't be with her, he wants a change on her perspective.

And I want you to be my acrobat
(Its a claim about trusting each other, like acrobats in the circus, she can't fully trust on him, that's why they can't perfom the act of love),
zapping102on September 24, 2015 Link
- No Replies Log in to reply
There was an error.

@zapping102
0
General Commenti just dont understand the.. want you to be my acrobat line... i dont wanna know what goes on in that bed haha
Greghereon September 09, 2006 Link
- No Replies Log in to reply
There was an error.

@Greghere
0
General CommentAlmost three years later --- I agree with DoubtFull. This was the first Elton John song I liked and it remains my favorite.
JWOon April 23, 2009 Link
- No Replies Log in to reply
There was an error.

@JWO
0
General CommentIt's like "Tiny Dancer". A 'woman' he is love with. Not sure about the "acrobat" part...ok well
I can use my imagination but let's say it doesn't mean that. K? K.
One of his best songs as far as I am concerned.
Thia007on November 12, 2011 Link
- 2 Replies Log in to reply
There was an error.

@Thia007

@Thia007 Not sure why woman is in quotation marks. Elton John didn't write the lyrics. Bernie Taupin did. And yes, he was attracted to women and fell in love with them.
JoeRose11on May 05, 2021

@Thia007 Not sure why woman is in quotation marks. Elton John didn't write the lyrics. Gary Osborne did. And yes, he was attracted to women and fell in love with them. So the song is not secretly about a man. It was inspired by a woman. While Elton John is gay, his lyrics were written by straight men (usually Bernie Taupin).
JoeRose11on May 05, 2021

Add your thoughts

Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.

Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!

Little Jeannie

Elton John

12 Comments

Add your thoughts

Most popular lyric tags

More Elton John Lyrics

SongMeanings is a place for discussion and discovery.